Overview Carbon Water Waste Ecosystems Appendix 65 Enabling systems change (continued) Advancing policy Already, we’ve seen our advocacy play a meaningful role Governments play a unique and important role in in policy solutions, including: $9.5B measuring and managing ecosystems and biodiversity • The release in 2020 of the EU Biodiversity Strategy for Great American as they collect and make publicly available massive 2030 in Europe, which Microsoft supported and will Outdoors Act provides amounts of data critical to environmental science. They continue to engage on, as key initiatives under the funding for the Land also own billions of acres of public land that they can use strategy are expected in 2021. The strategy aims to and Water Conservation to protect, manage, and restore critical ecosystems. And increase protected areas across the EU, and to identify Fund and $9.5 billion they establish and implement policies governing the use new measures for managing and restoring ecosystems. over five years for and management of natural resources and ecosystems. A dedicated “Biodiversity Partnership” will link National Parks. As part of our 2020 commitment, we will act on policy researchers and practitioners, and support data-driven by calling for: research to stop the loss of biodiversity. • National ecosystem assessments which help • The Great American Outdoors Act, which Microsoft governments understand what is happening in a directly advocated for and publicly supported during country’s natural environment and what actions are the legislative process, and which was passed and needed to safeguard critical ecosystem services. enacted into law in 2020. The Act has two main • Infrastructure to accelerate measuring and monitoring components: fully and permanently funding the Land of ecosystems, including digital tools and broadband and Water Conservation Fund at $900 million per year, connectivity to help collect, integrate, and make and providing $9.5 billion over five years to address publicly available data and real-time insight into the maintenance backlogs at US National Parks. health of our ecosystems. • The Trillion Trees Initiative, which was unveiled at the • Public land and water conservation, including World Economic Forum (WEF) in 2020. The US Chapter government funding for the acquisition and was launched in the third quarter of 2020 by WEF and maintenance of land and water for conservation, American Forests and was bolstered by a presidential recreation, and natural preservation. executive order to establish a high-level US interagency council. Microsoft serves on the Steering • Public-private partnerships that encourage and Committee of the initiative and submitted one of the facilitate investments by non governmental initial corporate pledges. We have been working with organizations, individuals, and the private sector the organizers on ways to design the initiative to protect and restore critical ecosystems. in a way that accelerates reforestation and verifiably removes carbon. Governing the use and management of natural resources and ecosystems.